Stephen Amell confirmed today that Arrow will be ending with a 10-episode Season 8.

It’s news that many saw as a possibility for a while, and now it’s confirmed: Arrow will be ending following an abbreviated 8th season on The CW.

It is to be assumed that the show will last long enough to make it to the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover, where many have speculated that Oliver Queen will die.

Stephen Amell has long confirmed he was signed for Season 8, but we never had an episode count. Today, Stephen confirmed a final run of 10 episodes for Season 8 on Twitter.

“Playing Oliver Queen has been the greatest professional experience of my life… but you can’t be a vigilante forever,” Stephen wrote.

“Arrow will return for a final run of 10 episodes this Fall. There’s so much to say… for now I just want to say thank you.”

Arrow as a series has been re-energized in this past year under new showrunner Beth Schwartz; hopefully she and the talented group of writers will land on a new project swiftly once Arrow is over. While it will be sad to see the series go, at least a plan like this can ensure that the core actors that we’ve known on the series for several years can see it through to the end. Also, lasting 8 years still means that Arrow is the second longest running comic book series in TV history, with only Smallville beating it. Let’s see The Flash and Supergirl do that!

In a statement that was released to select outlets, the show’s producers Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Beth Schwartz released a statement.

“This was a difficult decision to come to, but like every hard decision we’ve made for the past seven years, it was with the best interests of Arrow in mind,” they said. “We’re heartened by the fact that Arrow has birthed an entire universe of shows that will continue on for many years to come. We’re excited about crafting a conclusion that honors the show, its characters and its legacy and are grateful to all the writers, producers, actors, and — more importantly — the incredible crew that has sustained us and the show for over seven years.”

Arrow was a game-changer for The CW, premiering a year after Smallville ended on the network and ushering in a new era of DC superhero greatness. Without Arrow, we may have never had The Flash, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl, Black Lightning, Batwoman or anything else. The series made household names of people like Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards, and actors like David Ramsey and Katie Cassidy Rodgers really got a chance to shine, as did later additions to the show who have come in in recent years.

UPDATE: Stephen addressed is fans in a heartfelt Facebook Live video which you can see below. Among other things, he teases that even if he may be gone, he won’t be done.

Craig Byrne

Craig Byrne has been writing about TV on the internet since 1995. He is also the author of several published books, including Smallville: The Visual Guide and the show's Official Companions for Seasons 4-7.